Image: Octopi Media.

250SX East challenger Seth Hammaker said ‘I don’t even know how I stayed up’ amid the first turn chaos at Arlington, which saw multiple contenders fall out of contention early in the season-opening round.

Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki’s Hammaker was lined up next to Cole Davies (Monster Energy Yamaha Star Racing) for the main event, and despite the pair tangling, Hammaker kept his KX250 on two wheels.

The 25-year-old Hammaker remained upright, however, and remarkably completed the opening lap in fifth position. From there, despite damaging his finger in the impact, Hammaker managed to salvage P4.

“My day wasn’t too bad, my qualifying and heat race went really well,” he recounted. “Then the main event start was pretty hectic – I don’t even know how I stayed up through that first corner. I was just bouncing off riders, lucky to stay up.

“I did hit my clutch finger on someone else’s bike, which pulled my nail through the skin and that was hurting me, but no excuses. I got fourth in the main and wasn’t really riding my best – I struggled to figure out the jump line in the whoops, but all-in-all the track was very challenging and tricky.

“When I got into fourth, I just tried to find my rhythm. I wasn’t too worried about the guys in front of me, they all rode really well. I just didn’t figure out the track and wasn’t super-comfortable in the main event, but we’ll take fourth place and move on.”

After taking last year’s 250SX East championship down to the wire in Salt Lake City, Hammaker is pursuing his first professional class title this year, with Arlington marking his first race since undergoing shoulder surgery in the off-season.